Carrie Preston Talks ‘Elsbeth,’ Finding Joy and Her Sweet Valentine’s Day Tradition (EXCLUSIVE)

Carrie Preston, best known for her Emmy-winning portrayal of the clever and unconventional attorney Elsbeth Tascioni, continues to captivate audiences in CBS’s Elsbeth, now in its second season. However, many fans fondly recall when Elsbeth first appeared on The Good Wife and later in The Good Fight.

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Born in Macon, Georgia, Carrie Preston was inspired to pursue acting after seeing her older brother perform on stage at the Macon Little Theatre. It was then that she discovered her passion for the stage. Her path to stardom became clear after seeing the musical Annie a few years later. “All these little girls singing and dancing; I knew that’s what I wanted to do,” Preston shared in a Woman’s World interview, where she graced the cover (get your copy here!).

Trained at the prestigious Juilliard School, Preston made her Broadway debut in The Tempest before moving on to perform at the Alabama Shakespeare Festival. It was there she met her future husband, actor Michael Emerson, whom she married in 1998.

Throughout her career, Carrie Preston has showcased her versatility, appearing in Person of Interest, True Blood, Claws, and films such as My Best Friend’s Wedding, Vicky Cristina Barcelona, Transamerica, To the Bone, and They/Them. Despite her impressive resume, it’s her portrayal of Elsbeth Tascioni that has made Preston a beloved and memorable presence on screen.

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In addition to acting, Preston is also a talented director, with credits that include The Good Fight, Your Honor, and Claws, among other notable projects. Even with her demanding Elsbeth schedule, she makes time to relax with her husband and their dog, Chumley, at their Hudson Valley home.

In this exclusive Woman’s World interview, Carrie Preston shares how she spends her days off and what makes Elsbeth such a shrewd and eccentric character. Think pink!

Woman’s World: You said that you tend to play every color in the Southern rainbow to make each character different. So what color is Elsbeth and why?

Carrie Preston: “Elsbeth pink” is a color we see a lot on set and in the promos for the show. Ironically, I’ve always loved pink and my friends and family often give me pink gifts. Elsbeth is a bright pink pop of life and energy in a sometimes dark and dismal world of policing. In my real life, I have a large pink tote bag from a company I’m working with to hopefully create a pink tote of my own.

WW: Do you think Elsbeth pink can lift the spirits of viewers as it does to your character and to you?

CP: Absolutely! I’ve never been on a show where the costumes have gotten so much attention and brought so much delight to viewers from episode to episode. Our costume designers have introduced every shade of pink there is on the planet. It’s not just a color, but a way that Elsbeth comes onto a crime scene with a splash of color and lightens up the palette of the show and it’s by design. It also helps to paint her as somebody who should be dismissed and that allows her to slip in and get her job done.

WW: How much of your own personality do you bring to her?

CP: I admire Elsbeth’s genius and capacity for noticing things other people wouldn’t. She’s positive and fun and I would say I love to be both in my personal and professional life. It’s a joy to portray a character with so much zest for life. 

WW: She doesn’t seem to get stressed out or anxious, but what might cause you stress and what are a few actionable ways you ease that anxiety?

CP: I have become a regular practitioner of meditation and have found the lessons I’ve learned to be invaluable when dealing with any kind of stress. I love working on Elsbeth, but it is a demanding job and meditation helps keep me centered. I also work really hard to get sunshine—not sunbathing or anything like that—but outdoors, time in nature and exercise into my days. I’m motivated to take care of myself. I did enough sun damage as a kid. Breathing fresh air, getting out into the woods; I love to hike. I find that on weekends after working up to 70 hours a week, I really do crave and need that brush with something in the natural environment.  

WW: How many hours of sleep is ideal for you?

CP: I strive for the eight hours, but I don’t always get that. I try to at least get seven if I can. On Sunday nights it’s the hardest because generally I have to wake up at 3:30 or 4, so it’s sometimes very hard to shut my body down at 7:30 or 8 at night, but I do my best. Often I’ll just put a meditation in so that at least I’m resting if I’m not fully asleep. So even if you don’t get those seven to eight hours of sleep, at least you are resting in a mindful way—then it’s almost as good for your body. 

The hours at work can be erratic, so sometimes it feels like I’m in perpetual jet lag because some mornings I’m up at 3:30 or 4 and sometimes I don’t have to be at work until 1 in the afternoon ‘cause we shoot at night. It does wreak a little bit of chaos on your body. I do try to do a little nap or meditation at lunch, but our lunches are short—we only get half an hour. I might ask for an extra 10 minutes so that I’m able to reset.

 WW: What brings you happiness?

CP: My dog, Chumley. There’s no day when I leave the apartment for five minutes and come back that I don’t get excited and get a real sense of joy and pleasure when I see him. I guess you can say the same thing for my husband, too. There’s something about an animal, though, that really does open up your heart in such a beautiful way. He’s a rescue, but we did do his DNA, so he’s part Miniature Poodle and part Chihuahua with a tiny bit of Shih Tzu in there, so he’s tiny, only seven pounds. He lives large in our hearts.

 WW: What might we find you doing in your leisure time?

CP: I like to be active and love hiking, gardening, being outdoors, walking my dog. I also love catching up with my friends. I tend to have one book on my nightstand. Currently, I’m reading All Fours by Miranda July and on my audiobook app, I have Intermezzo by Sally Rooney. I like reading these different ways. 

Of course, I love watching TV. Lately I’ve enjoyed Industry, English Teacher, Slow Horses, The Old Man. Michael and I stream a lot of music and radio like KCRW out of LA and WWOZ out of New Orleans. Also NPR, WNYC or WFMU out of New York City.

 WW: How might you show gratitude or embrace each day?

CP: I am so, so thankful for this exciting time in my life. I never take it for granted…ever! If I get stressed about something, I take a deep breath and remind myself of one thing I’m grateful for in that moment and then one thing naturally leads to a million more to follow. That really centers me. The last thing I do lying in bed before I fall asleep is go through all the people and things in my life that I am grateful for.

WW: What were last night’s thankfuls?

CP: I always start with people, so obviously my husband, my immediate family members and whatever happened at work that day—all that I was grateful for with that. And I always give thanks for my health and I also give thanks for whatever I might have learned that day. Something that might have been challenging because, you know, you grow from challenges just as much as you grow from love. So I try to acknowledge those and vow to do a little bit better the next time I face a challenge like that.

WW: What might be your mantra for a simple life?

CP: Approach all things with generosity, compassion, humility and gratitude.

WW: Seems like you enjoy spending a lot of time with your husband, Michael. Any special Valentine’s Day plans?

CP: I will be working on Valentine’s Day, but I’m sure on that weekend we’ll be celebrating in some sort of way. We always get each other a card with some lovely sentiment in there. Michael writes beautiful cards and he’ll always get me a little something whether it be chocolates or flowers…the traditional things. Sometimes he’ll get me something special like a jewelry item—earrings or something like that. He’s very romantic.